Word Origin & History

paint early 13c., from O.Fr. peinter, from peint, pp. of peindre "to paint," from L. pingere "to paint," from PIE base *pik-/*pig- "cut." Sense evolution between PIE and L. was, presumably, from "decorate with cut marks" to "decorate" to "decorate with color." Cf. Skt. pingah "reddish," pesalah "adorned, decorated, lovely," pimsati "hews out, cuts, carves, adorns;" O.C.S. pegu "variegated;" Gk. poikilos "variegated;" O.H.G. fehjan "to adorn;" O.C.S. pisati, Lith. piesiu "to write." Probably representing the "cutting" branch of the family are O.E. feol (see file (n.)); O.C.S. pila "file, saw," Lith. ...pela "file." The noun is from c.1600. The verb meaning "to color with paint" (mid-13c.) is earlier than the artistic sense of "to make a picture of" (late 13c.) and older than painting in the sense of "an artist's picture in paint" (late 14c.); but painter is older in the sense of "artist who paints pictures" (mid-14c.) than in the sense of "workman who colors surfaces with paint" (c.1400). To paint the town (red) "go on a spree" first recorded 1884; to paint (someone or something) black "represent it as wicked or evil" is from 1590s. Adj. paint-by-numbers "simple" is attested by 1970.